Ardbeg Heavy Vapours Committee Release

Highly peaty on the nose. Licorice on the palate. Strong burn and ash on the finish. Nice.

Love ardbeg, but found this one quite bitter for my palette, without the alluring sweetness of corry or uigedail.

Very enjoyable sipper. It’s a heavier, more substantial take on regular Ardbeg 10 (though this has no age statement, and I suspect it may be a little younger). More pronounced dark chocolate notes, a spicy character, and oilier mouthfeel. Surprisingly, it’s not a complete and total smoke bomb. The trademark peat is definitely there leading the charge, don’t get me wrong… but it’s not all-consuming. This Ardbeg actually has some balance. Overall, I’m a huge fan of this expression. It’s big, deep, and bold.

The absence of the purifier left some big coal and dark chocolate notes. Nose: Dark Chocolate, Peppermint, Chili Peppers, Smoke, Coal, Iodine, Watermelons, Cinnamon, Cloves, Grilled Pineapples Palate: Smoke, Mackerels, Dark Chocolate, Coal, Blood Oranges, Beef, Ashes, Prunes, Burnt Caramel, Apricots Finish: Chocolate Oranges, Ashes, Iodine, Coal, Caramel, Pears, Raisins

First thing I noticed was that this whiskey is very very light in color. Almost clear but a hit of yellow. The nose is of toasted oak and charcoal. On the palate I get at first vanilla, chocolate, coconut and cherry that then gives way to tobacco leaf, oak, cigar, campfire smoke and bitter ash. The name heavy vapors is appropriate, not for the vapors that come off the whiskey in the glass, but more the feeling you get from exhaling after a sip.